My Story (A must read)

Growing up I remember eating a lot of fast food like Hardees, Mcdonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Chips, Pop & processed foods. Now our family didn't have a huge amount of money and so we had to head towards the cheaper less expensive food, which usually consists of over processed junk food, to supply us with a meal. Back then, Celiacs Disease wasn't really popular and rarely heard of, so consuming such products was only thought as slightly unhealthy. 

For as long as I can remember I have stuggled with gas, bloating & constipation and always thought it was because of my poor diet. When I married my husband back in 2007, my diet changed over to the more healthier side but I was still consuming huge amounts of pasta and processed food.  

It wasn't until about 3 months before September of 2012 that I started noticing severe abdominal pain. The pain wasn't located in one certain area, it seemed to be all over my stomach. The aches weren't like menstrual cramps but more along the lines of horrible gas pains x 10. Instead of rushing to the hospital, I decided to just wait it out and see if it was just some stomach flu that had got a hold of me, but as I monitored it, I noticed a pattern. Once every month I would notice that I would have these episodes and they would literally cause me to become unwilling to do anything and I spent most of my time on the couch, curled up moaning in pain. The pains would only last a day 1/2 but then I wouldn't have them again until next month. Usually right after the pain would go away I noticed I would get my regular period (which once again, is a totally different pain altogether, In fact, I didn't have huge cramps when having my period.) 

I logged all this information down in my brain, so I would be well prepared to talk about my symptoms with my doctor. By this point I had these symptoms: 

* Bloating
*Severe Cramps
*Constipation
*Foggy Brain (Forgetting easily) 
*Fatigue

And they always appeared once per month. By this point I was expressing my concern with my husband and starting to become very concerned with my health. I tried to stay positive but I had no idea what was going on with me. 

I went to a family gathering and ate some tortilla wraps and started experiencing  my horrible gas pains again. I was able to swallow it down and try my hardest not to show any pain the whole event but deep down, I was completely sick!. 

It wasn't until one morning when my husband was at work and I was home alone watching the 3 kids that all of a sudden while washing the dishes, I felt the horrible cramps come back again. I had eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on regular wheat bread and thought it was completely safe to do so. 

The cramps quickly turned into cold sweats, I felt as if I was going to pass out because the pain was so bad, it felt as if my intestines were knotting up inside. I searched for all the strength I had inside and grabbed my phone. I then called my Mother up and told her about my pain, she instructed me to take a Tylenol and see how I felt. I could barely get out of the couch and thought for sure that she and my father would have to come watch the kids while I got a ride in the ambulance to the hospital. After trembling and barely making it into the kitchen, I managed to consume 1 tylenol and within 10 minuets the pain had subsided. 

That is when I came to the conclution that I needed to make an appointment to see the doctor immediately. 

I got to the doctors office and all we really did was talk for what seemed a hour or two. I told him about all of my symptoms and he told me it sounded similar to what he calls IBS Irritable Bowl Syndrome and I could also be allergic to Gluten (Having Celiacs Disease). 
He told me that I would be tested for the Celiacs Disease the same day and would get the results in a few days. I didn't care what I had to do at this point, I just wanted answers and for these cramps to never ever come back again. 

The lab took some blood and by the next day, the results were in already. Usually it takes a little while to get the test results back but because I was so positive for Celiacs Disease, they needed to make sure I knew about these results right away and could start on a gluten free diet immediately. 

My doctor did a test that is called:    Tissue Transglutaminase Antibody IgA  &  Tissue Transglutaminase Aby IgG, Both tests came back POSITIVE. 

The standard range for the Antibody IGA is: 0-3.9 U/mL and my result was:
27.9 U/mL

The Standard range for the Antibody IgG is:0-5.9 U/mL and my result was: 60.4 U/mL  

The Doctor then informed me that I have Celiacs Disease and that I need to completely eliminate gluten from my diet, that also includes (Barley, Rye & some Oats). He mentioned to me that the only way these results would show up positive is if my intestines had severe damage. Every humans intestines have little pockets all over them called Villi and once they eat food, the pockets hold all the nutrition and help the nutrition to absorb into the body. When you have Celiacs Disease those pockets have been damaged and no longer work, almost as if they were cut off at the base. Little did I know I was filling my body with food but was malnourished at the same time. He then told me that I was experiencing the result of the damaged Villi around my regular menstrual cycle because of the estrogen- apparently, It can trigger the symptoms to be stronger.

Since the diagnosis, I have followed a very strict gluten free diet and have done quite a bit of research. I can safely and proudly say, I haven't had another one of those horrible cramping episodes since. I became pregnant 5 months ago and get your occasional gas/bloating issue, but that is just a normal symptom of pregnancy & it's far more tolerable. Ever since my new diet has been applied, I have noticed that not only have all of my symptoms disappeared but I am able to maintain a good and healthy weight. 

I wanted to share my story with you because I want there to be an awareness. If you feel these symptoms, don't ignore them, it's your body's way of saying, "Hey, there is something wrong." Everyone can develop Celiacs Disease or gluten sensitivity at any age and more and more people are becoming sick everyday. Do yourself a favor and look over the symptoms I had or even search it up on the internet yourself and see if you have any of the symptoms of Celiacs Disease. The sooner you know this and the sooner you change your diet, the quicker you will feel better.

Keep in mind that Celiacs Disease is a serious condition and if it is not treated it can lead to death. DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND BE TESTED IF YOU HAVE 1 OR ANY OF THE FOLLOWING SYMPTOMS ABOVE.